Jamaica’s Strict Gun Control Doesn’t Prevent Widespread Violence

The laws of the Caribbean nation of Jamaica don’t just strictly regulate firearm ownership—they also permit the police and military to work together to confiscate illegally owned guns through warrantless searches. The result? A homicide rate that ranks with the worst U.S. cities, and it’s on the rise.

A documentary available on YouTube details the current situation in Jamaica, where criminal gangs use readily available illegal guns to cause mayhem. Citizens who want to own a firearm for protection are required to navigate plenty of red tape in order to secure a license; the many restrictions mean that few law-abiding gun owners exist in the country. Insight Crime reports a nearly 20 percent increase in the homicide rate over last year, which saw roughly 50 homicides per 100,000 people.

As pointed out in a blog post at The Truth About Guns, Jamaica is an island, so the excuses raised by Chicago politicians for that city’s high homicide rate—particularly that “loose gun laws” in surrounding jurisdictions lead to an influx of firearms—hold no sway here. By anti-gunners’ logic, Jamaica should be paradise. Instead, gangs are making it hell on earth for law-abiding Jamaicans.